The University of Coimbra is spearheading a €2M European initiative to redesign how citizens participate in policy-making, challenging the conventional wisdom that representative democracy alone can address housing crises and social exclusion. The project targets a fundamental flaw: vulnerable populations remain systematically locked out of decision-making forums that claim to represent them.
Why This Matters
• EU-funded project tests inclusive citizen assemblies across Europe, with Portugal positioned as a research hub
• Housing crisis recommendations from pilot assemblies could influence Portuguese rental laws and social housing quotas
• Local adoption rising: Portuguese municipalities increasingly deploying citizen assemblies as democratic tools, from Lisboa to Valongo
Rethinking Representation Through Intersectionality
EU-CIEMBLY: Building an Inclusive European Citizens' Assembly operates on a deceptively simple premise: demographic quotas don't equal genuine inclusion. Dulce Lopes, who coordinates the initiative from the University of Coimbra's Faculty of Law, argues that statistical representation has historically failed marginalized groups.
"For a long time, the assumption was that citizen assemblies should mirror demographic statistics almost perfectly," Lopes explained. "That framework doesn't work for people in situations of greater vulnerability. We're seeking methodologies that allow these individuals to not only participate but genuinely influence the decisions taken."
The Horizon Europe-funded research recognizes how gender, ethnicity, age, socioeconomic status, and disability intersect to shape—and often obstruct—democratic participation. The Coimbra-led team proposes concrete supports: accessibility guarantees, properly facilitated deliberative processes, flexible participation formats, and conditions that accommodate people with varying schedules and resources.
Housing as Laboratory for Democratic Innovation
The research team deliberately chose housing policy as its testing ground. "It's a concern for all countries and a scourge across the entire European Union," Lopes noted. Portugal's housing affordability challenges—particularly in Lisboa and Porto—make the topic immediately relevant to residents navigating an increasingly competitive rental market.
Two pilot assemblies are scheduled as part of the project: a local assembly in Colchester, United Kingdom, set for February 2026 at the University of Essex with 50 citizens, and a national assembly in Nicosia, Cyprus, planned for April 2026 at the University of Cyprus. Both assemblies are expected to generate concrete policy proposals addressing housing challenges.
What the Pilot Assemblies Will Address
The assemblies are designed to produce recommendations that could directly impact Portuguese housing policy:
Activating vacant and underutilized properties—a particularly relevant focus given Portugal's ongoing debate over taxing empty urban housing to increase rental supply.
Mandating social housing quotas in new developments, similar to existing Portuguese municipal requirements but with potential for stricter enforcement mechanisms.
Strengthening anti-discrimination laws and tenant protections, addressing concerns about selective rental practices and eviction procedures that disproportionately affect lower-income residents and immigrants.
Ensuring more inclusive housing decisions by embedding vulnerable groups directly into policy design rather than merely consulting them after frameworks are established.
The Colchester assembly is expected to focus on student housing costs and accessibility barriers, while the Cyprus forum will deliver citizen-driven recommendations to key decision-makers including MEP Michalis Hatzipantelas and the Commissioner for Citizens' Rights Panagiotis Palates.
Transnational Assembly on the Horizon
Later in 2026, EU-CIEMBLY will convene a transnational citizen assembly bringing together participants from multiple European Union member states to debate the housing crisis and the bloc's role in resolving it. This cross-border deliberation represents an escalation from local and national experiments to genuinely European civic engagement.
For Portuguese participants, the assembly offers a platform to compare their experiences with counterparts facing similar affordability pressures in cities like Berlin, Barcelona, and Dublin. It also positions Portugal's academic institutions at the forefront of democratic innovation research within the EU framework.
Impact on Portugal's Democratic Landscape
Portugal's adoption of citizen assemblies remains nascent but expanding. Municipalities are increasingly exploring deliberative democracy models, with Valongo hosting assemblies focused on discrimination and social inclusion. Portugal's democratic experimentation has gained international attention, positioning the country as a test bed for inclusive governance approaches.
The broader European trend reflects demand for democratic renewal. Portugal fits squarely within this pattern, promoting deliberative processes at multiple governance tiers as communities seek new ways to address pressing policy challenges like housing affordability.
Results Presentation and Policy Implications
EU-CIEMBLY will present its findings later in 2026 during dedicated events focused on "The Future of Local Governance." Registration details will be available through the project's official website. The program is expected to include documentary videos on deliberative processes and discussion of policy recommendations, particularly regarding integrating intersectionality into local governance.
For Portuguese policymakers and residents, the research carries significant practical implications. As housing costs continue affecting middle- and lower-income families, the inclusive assembly model offers a mechanism to incorporate voices typically excluded from policy debates: renters facing affordability challenges, elderly residents on fixed incomes, immigrants navigating language barriers, and people with disabilities confronting inaccessible housing stock.
Whether these experimental forums translate into binding policy changes remains to be seen. But the University of Coimbra's leadership in EU-CIEMBLY positions Portuguese academic research—and potentially Portuguese governance models—at the cutting edge of European democratic innovation, with tangible applications to the country's most pressing domestic policy challenge.
